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San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing
PlayStation | genre = Racing | modes = Single-player Multiplayer | cabinet = Sit-down Upright | arcade system = Atari Flagstaff | display = Raster Horizontal Orientation | platforms = Arcade, Nintendo 64, PlayStation, Windows, PS2, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube (Included in Midway Arcade Treasures 3 as Rush The Rock) }} San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing is a video game developed by Atari Games and published by Midway Games. This game was first released in arcades in 1996 and was ported to Nintendo 64 in 1997 and the PlayStation in 1998. San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing is the first game in the ''Rush'' series. Gameplay ''San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing'' Released in 1996, the original San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing features three tracks that take place in San Francisco, California and eight playable vehicles. San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing is the first game to use Atari Games' Flagstaff engine. ''San Francisco Rush: The Rock'' Released in 1997, the second installment of Rush brought four tracks, including the Alcatraz track, and four new cars were introduced. The arcade cabinet is seen in one clip in the music video for Len's Steal My Sunshine (1999). ''San Francisco Rush: The Rock: Wave Net'' Released in 1998, the third and final installment of San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing which was an updated version of The Rock with support for online muiltiplayer. Development San Francisco Rush was built around the 3D FX Voodoo Graphics dual chips. It was unveiled at the 1996 AMOA show. After originally looking at maps of San Francisco, knowing that the cars would be going 150-160 mph, they realized that they would instead have to craft an alternate version of the city that was more 'fun'. Ports Nintendo 64 Rush was ported to the Nintendo 64 in 1997. This conversion contains six regular tracks and two hidden tracks. The regular tracks can be run in either reverse or mirrored modes and feature added collectible hidden keys throughout the track that can be used to unlock hidden vehicles. Most of the original cars appeared in this conversion, but some from San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition are not present. This conversion contains a Practice Mode and a Death Race mode where the game ends if the player crashes. The Nintendo 64 port of Rush also includes a Circuit Mode and a save system for Fast Times, circuit progress, and hidden keys that the player can find on secret spots to unlock new cars. San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition was presumed to be ported to the Nintendo 64 for release in 1998, but, despite advertisements included in the box of the Nintendo 64 version stating the game was "Coming Fall 1998 for Nintendo 64," this was later reported as an erroneous statement, and that the advert was actually intended solely for the arcade version, which includes all of the tracks that were already in the Nintendo 64 version. Game Boy Color Rush was planned to be ported to the Game Boy Color, but the project was cancelled because the publishers did not find suitable a developer for the conversion. Sony PlayStation Rush was ported to Sony PlayStation in 1998. This conversion contains three tracks, plus an exclusive bonus track. None of the original music from the Arcade versions is present, and the announcer voice has been modified, but some of his voiceover is included in the game. Some of the modes from the Nintendo 64 port are included. The Death Race mode was renamed Extreme Race, and circuit mode was included but with fewer tracks. There are two exclusive modes: GP Mode and Explosive Mode. The PlayStation version has all eight original cars but none of the San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition cars. The gameplay is also different from the arcade version, as the gravity is higher than the arcade version, reducing the jump airtime, and the steering sensitivity was also modified. PC San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition was released on PC exclusively with the Quantum3D Raven video card, and was designed to run only on that specific card. It can, however, run on more modern video cards through the use of modified .exes and a glide wrapper for glide support. It is a near-perfect conversion of the arcade game, although it suffers from several collision detection issues and other bugs. Other ports San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition was ported to Midway Arcade Treasures 3 for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox and a similar version is also included in Midway Arcade Treasures Deluxe Edition for the PC. The arcade treasures version is a recreation of the original game, with a new physics engine and sound changes: The game's audio was replaced entirely with a new announcer voice, uses remixed or altered music tracks, and has completely different sound effects. This version received heavy criticism by fans for the alterations made to the audio along with the new physics engine that was reported to be buggy and therefore would mess up the gravity in the game. The PC version had a critical bug where the car would go over 200 mph and then blow up if gas was held on without braking. Sequels The San Francisco Rush series was followed by three sequels. The first was Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA, released in 1998 exclusively on Nintendo 64. The second was the futuristic San Francisco Rush 2049 which was released in 1999 for the arcade and ported to the Dreamcast and Nintendo 64 in 2000. The third and final one was L.A. Rush released in 2005. Reception Next Generation reviewed the arcade version of the game, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "what's coolest about this game are the shortcuts: into sewers, off broken-down freeways, onto skyscraper rooftops, and other unexpected places. Camouflaged in the urban settings of San Francisco, these shortcuts can cut players far ahead of opponents, or if they blow it and crash, a shortcut can set them back to the end of the pack. Either way, it adds a thrill of discovery not usually found in driving games and makes the risk well worth it." Brazilian magazine SuperGamePower gave the PlayStation version 3.8 out of 5. French magazine Player One gave the PlayStation version 70%, praising the better steering when it comes to sharp turns, but criticized the graphics. Spanish magazine PlanetStation gave the PlayStation port 3 out of 5 orbs, praising the jumps, speed, music, and multiple game modes, but criticized the graphics that are inconsistent with the framerate, and the minimal distinction between the playable cars. Next Generation reviewed the Nintendo 64 version of the game, rating it five stars out of five, and stated that "All told, SF Rush is just short of brilliant. It's a fun, challenging game that keeps you playing over and over again." References External links * * *[http://www.arcade-history.com/?n=san-francisco-rush-extreme-racing&page=detail&id=2308 San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing] at Arcade History *[http://www.gamerankings.com/n64/198546-san-francisco-rush-extreme-racing/index.html San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing (N64)] at GameRankings *[http://www.gamerankings.com/ps/198547-san-francisco-rush-extreme-racing/index.html San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing (PS1)] at GameRankings Category:1996 video games Category:Arcade games Category:Atari arcade games Category:Cancelled Game Boy Color games Category:Ed Logg games Category:Midway video games Category:Multiplayer and single-player video games Category:Nintendo 64 games Category:PlayStation (console) games Category:Racing video games Category:Racing video games set in the United States Category:Video games developed in the United States Category:Video games set in San Francisco Category:Windows games